Mag-log inMiranda glanced at the time.There was only half an hour left, so she nodded.Felix went into the lounge, leaving the door slightly ajar.The office fell quiet.After setting an alarm, Miranda leaned back against the soft couch and closed her eyes. The drowsiness of the afternoon gradually washed over her, and before she knew it, she had drifted off.A few minutes later, Felix draped a suit jacket over her.The man who had said he was going to rest in the lounge had returned and sat back down in the office.Felix didn’t usually nap in the afternoon.His eyes had only looked red because of the alcohol. He wasn’t actually tired.Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye.Miranda was startled awake by her alarm. She opened her eyes and reached for her phone, only to feel a dark gray suit jacket slip from her shoulders.She froze for a second, then looked up.Felix was sitting behind his desk, working.So he hadn’t slept at all.She was the one who had fallen asleep.Mirand
The elevator doors opened, and the two of them stepped inside.The enclosed space shut out the noise from the lobby. Felix pressed the button for his office floor, and the elevator began to rise smoothly.In the small space, the scent of alcohol on him mixed with his familiar cedar cologne, making his presence feel even stronger.Felix leaned back against the elevator wall, his head turned slightly as he watched the floor numbers change. Under the cool white light, the lines of his profile looked sharp and clean.Miranda stood on the other side, lost in thought.With a soft chime, the elevator doors opened.A female assistant was walking down the hall with a stack of documents in her arms. When she suddenly saw Felix, she quickly greeted him.“Good afternoon, Mr. Gibson.”Then she noticed Miranda and greeted her as well.“Good afternoon, Ms. Stone.”Miranda gave her a polite smile and nodded, then followed Felix toward his office.Felix stepped into the spacious office.The
Felix said to Miranda, “There’s a shareholder meeting this afternoon. Come rest in my office for a while.”Miranda frowned.“Are you sure you can still attend a meeting?”Felix smiled.“You think that little of me?”“Let’s go.” Miranda looked at him. “Is Gavin downstairs?”“He is,” Felix said.The two of them left first, while the other employees stayed behind in the restaurant, still chatting.Near the elevator, Felix swayed slightly, but he quickly steadied himself.“You should postpone the afternoon meeting by an hour,” Miranda said.“Okay. I’ll have Gavin notify everyone in a bit.”They walked out to the hotel lobby, where Gavin immediately came forward.“Mr. Gibson. Ms. Stone.”“Take us back to the office,” Felix said. “And push the shareholder meeting back by an hour.”“Of course,” Gavin replied at once.The afternoon sun was blazing.Miranda walked beside Felix to the car. Even then, Felix didn’t forget to open the door for her and let her get in first.Miranda
Miranda sat back down.Just then, the servers began bringing out dessert. A mini mango mousse cup was placed in front of each person. It was small, delicate, and looked surprisingly good.Felix did not touch his.Instead, he gently pushed it toward Miranda.“You can have mine.”His voice was low, with the faintest hint of coaxing.Miranda looked at him for a moment. Then she picked up her spoon and started eating.A thought suddenly crossed her mind.Had she been a little too hard on him earlier?After all, he was one of the main figures at today’s celebration. He was also the president of Gibson Biotech. And those tiny shifts in his mood were probably, in the end, because of her.Miranda didn’t let herself think any further.She finished her own dessert in a few bites. Then she pulled Felix’s dessert closer and quietly ate his too.Felix watched her.The gloom in his eyes seemed to fade, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.After lunch went on for a while, some o
Now that the food had arrived, Miranda finally realized she was hungry.She nodded.“Okay. Let’s eat first.”She was still deciding what to take when Felix picked up the serving utensils and placed the tenderest piece of fish on her plate.At the same time, he said to James, “Dr. Moore really is indispensable to this project. His insight, his vision, his dedication… all of it is impressive.”Miranda blinked and turned to look at the man beside her.His tone was calm. Polite, even.But somehow, the words sounded a little too deliberate, as if the praise carried the faintest edge of a challenge.James smiled and adjusted his glasses.“You’re too kind, Mr. Gibson. I’m just doing my part.”Miranda looked at Felix, her gaze sharpening slightly.Felix noticed, but he didn’t meet her eyes. He only said softly, “Eat. It’s better while it’s hot.”Miranda didn’t look away.It was as if she were trying to see through him.Felix’s throat moved slightly, and his gaze flickered behind
At noon, Felix hosted a lunch for the entire project team in the banquet hall. A larger celebration dinner had also been arranged for that evening.James’s team had grown to more than thirty people. With assistants and staff from various departments included, the banquet hall filled five tables.Miranda sat with James’s team at one of the tables.Felix arrived a little later.The seat beside Miranda had been left empty for him, as if everyone had silently agreed that it belonged to him.Miranda did not notice.She was listening to James talk about the next phase of the project. When it came to topics within their field, Miranda and James did have a rare kind of understanding between them.Sometimes, Miranda didn’t even need to finish her thought before James understood what she meant. And when James only said half a sentence, Miranda already knew the direction he was pointing toward.So when Felix walked into the restaurant, the first thing he saw was Miranda and James looking
In the cafe, Mike turned to Miranda and asked quietly, “Do you want to avoid them? We can rebook if you’d rather.”Miranda had already checked. The next available flight was not until eleven. She wanted to arrive early to prepare, and Zion was on the same flight anyway. There was no reason for her
“Dad,” Mike called out helplessly, though the smile at the corners of his eyes was impossible to hide.“All right, all right. I’ll stop,” Justin said with a hearty laugh. “Miranda, our family is not big on formalities. I’m leaving on a business trip tomorrow, but I’ve told Mike to bring you by the
Sienna took out a gift and handed it to her. “Here. I bought this for you last time, but I never had the chance to give it to you.”Mia was focused on the gift when Sienna decided to probe further. She gently pulled her closer and asked, “Mia, would you like Daddy to get you a new mom?”At those w
Xena lowered her gaze, her fingertips lightly tracing the rim of her glass. “But Felix’s recent behavior really does feel off.”Then she looked up. “This time in Hamilton, he was with Miranda almost the entire time.”“What?” Sienna blurted out, stunned. “Are you saying Felix didn’t spend that time







